We are a Licensed Home daycare located in Bridle Trails area of Kirkland.  We care for children ages 6 weeks to 6 years (until they enter Kindergarten).  We offer a hands-on play based Preschool Program that is developmentally appropriate for all ages and abilities of the children in our care.  Our daycare became an Early Childhood Education Assistance Program (ECEAP) in October 2022 and provides the Teaching Strategies Gold and Creative Curriculum to all the children in our care.

Philosophy and Program Description                                              

Our mission is to provide quality childcare experiences that help every child develop cognitively, physically, socially, emotionally, and spiritually.

We believe that all children deserve love, attention, and nurturing. We believe that a safe learning environment allows children to explore and grow. We allow children to have hands-on learning experiences. This fosters age appropriate development. We read to the children every day to promote early literacy and language skills. We provide opportunities for children to learn through PLAY. We believe that positive reinforcement is important for children to develop self-esteem. Children need an environment that supports free expression and stimulates learning. Most importantly, we believe that children need to be SAFE and have FUN! Children learn best from experiencing the world around them. 

At Nanny’s Kare, we feel young children need to be nurtured and loved individually, so they can grow and learn at their own pace. Our aim is to provide a home-like environment where individuality is accepted and encouraged. We remain committed to bringing the highest quality early childhood education and care to our children and their families.

While we try to teach our children all about life, 

Our children teach us what life is all about!

Hi! We are Annette and Richard Nunez.  We were married in Yakima, Washington in 1981. We moved to Kirkland in 1988. We have five boys: Ricky (36), Matthew (35), David (32), Tony (25), Joey (16), and several grandchildren. We’ve been providing quality childcare in this home location since 1995. We both really enjoy working (playing) with children. We appreciate their honesty and innocence. We like looking at the world through their eyes. We believe that each child is a gift from God and needs lots of love to grow and learn. We are a non-smoking family and do not allow smoking on the premises.

I received my Child Development Associates Degree (CDA) in April 2011. Richard took these classes with me. We are members of the Washington State Family Child Care Association (WSFCCA). I also earned my State Short Certificate in Early Childhood Education in June 2021. We attend monthly meetings that include early childhood education classes. The State of Washington requires that we take annual training on topics related to caring for young children. Feel free to ask us about our trainings. We will share any interesting topics we learn with families in our program. We are both certified in CPR and First Aid and renew them every 2 years. We voluntarily joined Early Achievers of Washington in August 2012. We were rated a Level 3 in September 2019. 

We are a Catholic family. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, He's the second Person of the Trinity, He died for our sins, and rose from the dead, He is our Lord and Savior, and He opened the Gates of Heaven for everyone.  Music, songs, and stories, may reflect our beliefs.  Some religious activities may take place during Christian Holidays, especially Christmas and Easter Seasons.  We also say Grace before snacks & meals giving praise and thanks to God. 

Your religious belief will be respected and your child will not be discriminated because of it. Your child will not be required to participate in any activity which goes against your family’s beliefs. If you have a special celebration in your culture that you would like to share with the children, let us know, and we will try to include them in our program.  Everyone's beliefs are treated with respect.

We live in a multi-cultural world. We respect all families linguistic and cultural backgrounds. We help to enhance children’s learning and development by respecting each child’s diverse learning style. We encourage parents to develop their child’s home language. We invite families to get involved in our program and to share their unique cultural traditions with us so we can all grow and learn together.

We will assist children and parents who have limited English language ability by offering visual pictures, or translation of documents into their spoken language whenever possible. We are willing to learn sign language, and already know a few baby sign languages.

We have 2 dogs, a French Bulldog named Luna, and a mixed breed mutt named Brandi, and an outdoor tabby cat named Grace.  All are current on immunizations and in good health. They are all kid friendly. No aggressive or harmful pets will be allowed on the premises. Childcare staff will always be present when children interact with our pets. Children and staff will always follow proper hand washing after interaction with pets. Our pets have an area separate from our outdoor play area to relieve themselves. Our animals do not interact with the children inside our daycare room, but the children do have opportunities to interact with them outdoors on our playground. You may have to consider any allergies to dogs or cats before enrolling in our daycare.

         Time                                     Activities

 7:00am - 9:00am              Arrival - Free Play

 9:00am - 9:10am             Clean up - Bathroom Break -   Hands Washed 

 9:10am - 9:30am             Morning Snack – Brush Teeth

 9:30am - 9:45am             Group Time – Stories, Songs, Calendar

 9:45am - 10:30am           Free Play at Centers – Art Creativity, Block Building,

                                            Dramatic Play, Manipulatives, Games, Puzzles, Music, Library...

10:30am - 10:40am         Clean up - Bathroom Break -   Hands Washed

10:40am – 11:30pm        Outside Play

11:30am – 11:40pm        Bathroom Break - Hands Washed

11:40am - 12:10pm         Lunch

12:10pm - 12:25pm        Story-Time

12:25pm - 2:30pm          Nap-time - Potty and Diaper change upon Waking

  2:30pm - 3:00pm          Quiet Activities - Books, Puzzles...

  3:00pm - 3:10pm          Clean up - Bathroom Break -   Hands Washed

  3:10pm - 3:30pm          Afternoon Snack

  3:30pm - 4:50pm          Outside Play

  4:50pm – 5:00pm          Bathroom Break - Hands Washed

  5:00pm - 5:30pm           Free Play - Departure Home

This is only a Sample Schedule and could change depending on the mood of the children and outside weather. We may decide to take a walk or just snuggle…

Parents have complete access to all areas of our home daycare during regular operating hours.  Parents are always welcome to visit, drop-in, play, and observe your child. If you would like to discuss more personal matters with us, please schedule a meeting time in advance so we can arrange to speak away from the children. Parents may request to see their child’s records, compliance agreements from our licensor, all staff and licensee’s training and professional development records. 

Please contact us in person, by phone (425)245-3230, text (425)245-3302, private note, or email (nannyskare@msn.com) anytime you have a question or concern about your child, or our child care program. 

Parents are their child’s first and most important teacher. We will partner with you for the success of your child. Be sure to share with us anything you think we should know about your child's developmental, behavioral, health, linguistic, cultural, social, physical, and any other relevant information. This way we can provide the best care to help your child thrive. 

Drop off and pick up times are opportunities for us to communicate on a daily basis.  We will schedule a regular time to meet with you twice each year to discuss your child in a more formal way through a family/provider conference. In these conferences, we will communicate with each other about your child’s individual developmental goals, strengths, and challenges, and how we can support your child in their on-going learning and development.

We do not discriminate against anyone with special needs. If your child has specific needs, let us know. We will do our best to accommodate your child and to meet their health and safety needs. We will obtain additional training, if necessary, to provide safe and effective care for your child. We will try to arrange our environment to meet their needs. We will create a written plan together with parents that will help support the needs of your child while in our care. We have experience with Autism and ADHD, and are willing to learn about any other special need. 

Effective discipline is an essential element for a child’s growth. It develops self-esteem, self-direction, and self-control. Misbehavior can be prevented by providing a variety of Age-Appropriate activities and making positive behavior expectations known in advance.

We model and teach appropriate behavior and language skills to all the children, with the goal of having them work out their differences by using their words, not their actions, to tell their friends when something is bothering them, or to remind their friends to share, or wait their turn. We use a visual timer to help the children learn to share and wait their turn. If intervention is necessary, it may be redirection to another activity or encouraging children to think up alternative solutions to the problem. This teaches them problem solving skills.

We will use consistent, fair, and positive methods of guiding children’s behavior. Methods used will be appropriate to the child’s age, abilities, developmental level and culture.

A quiet space will be provided to a child that has lost all self-control, causing harm to self or others, and is unable to reason. It will be age appropriate and not be punitive; but will be an opportunity for the child to calm down and regain self-control. 

Any form of corporal punishment, physical or mechanical restraint, the withholding of food, or any form of emotional abuse is prohibited by anyone on the premises, including parents. No corporal punishment will be used in our program. 

If a child’s behavior becomes an ongoing issue, we will confer with the parents using the following steps:

· Inform you of the behavior, and ask what is being done at home 

· Communicate on how we are trying to improve the behavior

· Seek outside resources from the community, such as, the child's doctor, 

  psychologist...

· If behavior continues to be harmful to self or others and is not improving, child 

 may need to seek care elsewhere

Separation

We will help your child say, "goodbye" to you when you drop them off in our care. Some children adjust to this transition easily, while others find it very stressful. Either way it is important that you tell them, "goodbye" before leaving and not "sneak" off. Sneaking off will only prevent stress for you, not your child! Once they realize you are gone, they will learn not to trust you, and the next time you drop them off, they will cling to you, for fear that you will "sneak" off again.

We will greet you at the door. You may hand off your child right away to us, or you may come inside for a few minutes to help your child transition into our care. You know your child best, so you decide what works best for him/her. 

If you plan on staying for a while, to help your child transition, spend it showing an interest in what your child is doing. Join in an activity with him/her, or help them to start an activity they are interested in. When you are ready to say "Goodbye", let us know, so we can assist if necessary. Make the "goodbyes" short and sweet, once you start them. The less time they spend working themselves up, the less time it will take us to calm them back down. Soon they will build trust and a routine realizing that you will be back together soon.

Diapering Procedure

A Diaper Changing Station is located in the bathroom. Disposable changing sheets will be used during each diaper change, or when not available, we will disinfect the diaper changing area after each use. Children’s and adult’s hands will be washed before and after every diaper change. Soiled diapers will be placed in a plastic bag, tied shut, and put into the garbage can. Garbage is taken outside daily. 

Toilet Learning

Potty training will begin only when child shows signs of readiness and with the consent of the parent. No child will be forced to use the potty. At signs of resistance, toilet training will stop and resume at a later date when the child is willing to try again. We stress the positive approach with lots of praise and encouragement. We realize that accidents happen during the learning process, and they are treated respectfully, without demeaning the child. We teach the child to be self-sufficient by showing them how to pull down and up their own pants and to climb on and off 

the toilet independently and safely. Clothing that is easy for the child to dress themselves is essential to the learning process. Snaps and zippers prolong the process. The more independent the child can be, the quicker they learn.

Infant Feeding

Infants eat when hungry. We will agree with parents on a feeding schedule. Bottles

need to be prepared at home and brought to the day care daily. Please label all bottles with child’s name and date. Pre-made bottles (formula or breast milk) will be

refrigerated and returned if not consumed within 24 hours. Unfinished bottles will

be discarded after 1 hour. To ensure safety and promote nurturing the following will take place:

· Babies will be held in a semi sitting position while feeding.

· We will interact with babies while feeding.

· We will never prop a bottle

When your child is ready to start eating solid foods, you need to introduce the new food at home first, to make sure he/she doesn't have an allergic reaction, then let us know what he/she can or cannot eat. You are responsible for suppling your infant and child’s food. 

Infant Sleep Position

We will work with you to discuss your child’s sleep patterns and needs. Infants and toddlers will follow individualized sleep schedules. To reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS):

(1) We will place an infant to sleep on his/her back. If the infant has turned over while sleeping, he/she does not need to be returned to his/her back; as long as he/she has the ability to roll over from tummy to back, and back to tummy independently;

(2) We will place an infant on a sleeping mat with a tight-fitting sheet; on the floor with a safety gate around it to prevent another child from disturbing him/her.

(3) We will not allow soft fluffy bedding, blankets stuffed toys, pillows, crib bumpers and similar items in the infant sleeping area;

(4) We will uncover an infant's head and face during sleep;

(5) We will make sure infants do not get too warm during sleep. 

(6) We will not place the infant in another sleeping position other than on their backs, or use a sleep positioning device unless required by a written directive or medical order from the infant's health care provider. 

Our child care is open Monday through Friday from 7:00am – 5:30pm, except holidays and closures. We have an open-door policy and parents are always welcome to visit their children at any time during these operating hours. 

Holiday                                                        Date -   Comments

 New Year's Eve                                                December 31st

 New Year’s Day                                                January 1

 Martin Luther King Day                                  3rd Monday in January

 President’s Day                                               3rd Monday in February

 Good Friday                                                    Friday before Easter

 Easter Monday                                               Monday after Easter

 Memorial Day                                                 Last Monday in May

 Juneteenth                                                       June 19th

 Independence Day                                         July 4th

 Summer Vacation                                           2 Weeks in July or August TBA

 Labor Day                                                        First Monday in September

 Veteran’s Day                                                  November 11th TBA

 Thanksgiving                                                   4th Thursday and Friday

 Christmas                                                        1 Week (December 25th)

Exact dates will be posted the end of January and a yearly calendar will be given to all families showing all daycare closures. Normal daycare fees will be charged during this time. Our vacation, Sick Leave, and Personal days are included as part of our daycare fee. If you leave our daycare before our vacation, we will pro-rate the fee and it will be due at once. 

Example: You start our daycare in October and leave in March – our pro-rated fee would be $400. Figured like this: $1600.00 Toddler Monthly Fee divided by 12 months divided by 2 weeks' vacation X 6 months

Holidays Celebrated/Example of Activities:

New Year's Day- Make a Hat, Count Down from 10, Blow Whistles

Martin Luther King Jr. - Read "We Are All Alike, We Are All Different!"

Ground Hog's Day - Read "Guess Whose Shadow?", Groundhog puppets

Valentine's Day- Teddy Bear Picnic; Make Mailboxes; Pass Out Friendship

Cards and Notes; Cookie Decorating or Fruit Kabobs

President's Day- Read about Abe Lincoln and George Washington

St. Patrick's Day - Decorate Cookies; Leprechauns Visit and turn our Toilet Water Green! 

They Mess up our Room and Hide Chocolate Gold Coins Everywhere! 

Easter - Make Baskets; Easter Egg Hunt; Decorate Eggs; Decorate Crosses;

Resurrection Eggs

Cinco de Mayo- Mexican Celebration; Read "Fiesta!"

4th of July- Make Red, White, and Blue Hat; and Jell-O

End of Summer- Goodbye Party to Friends Entering School, Celebrate Old and New Friends

Thanksgiving- Read Books about Pilgrims and Native Americans; Sing Turkey Songs

Christmas - Nativity Stories; Play with Manger Toys; Decorate Cookies; Christmas Tree

Birthdays - We recommend Healthy Snacks, fruit roll-ups, Juice Popsicles, or 

Yogurt... the traditional cupcakes or cookies are acceptable as well, but everything must be in their original store-bought containers, as we are not allowed to serve children food that has been prepared by other parents than their own, without prior written permission. Parents are welcome to celebrate their child's special day with us. Treats are handed out around 9:45am. No gifts are exchanged at daycare.

If your family has any special holiday that you celebrate, or a different way of celebrating the above holidays, let us know and we will try to include it in our program. We are always willing to learn new ways of celebrating that is inclusive to all the children and their families in our day care! 

Each new family is required to visit our home at least once prior to enrollment. Please call to schedule an interview. We prefer the first visit to be after business hours while we are not busy caring for the children. This prevents strangers from entering our daycare when children are present.  At this visit, we will meet with you, discuss our policies, answer any questions you may have, and show you around our facility.  If you like what our day care has to offer your child, then a second interview can be scheduled during business hours, so you can see how we interact with the children in our care.

There are several forms you are required to complete prior to your child's attendance:

1. Child Care Registration Form

2. Permission Authorization Form – which includes permission to take photos and videos of your child, none will be taken without your written permission

3. Child Care Agreement Form

4. Certificate of Immunization Status (CIS) or similar form supplied by

a health professional

5. Parent Responsibilities 

All new children are subject to a 30-day trial period. This period is used to observe the child's adjustment to care and to talk about concerns. Parents will be notified if the child is not adjusting  the daycare program and every attempt will be made to resolve the problem.  After a 30-day trial period, we will determine if child care services are satisfactory to everyone.  If any problems cannot be resolved, the care will be terminated.

  Vacations, Holidays, Sick Leave, and daycare closure days are included in our daycare fee. 

1. Please call and inform us when your child will not attend due to illness or some other event. 

2. Please advise us upon enrollment if you plan to remove your child from child care for any length of time (i.e., the summers for school teachers, or when you are on maternity leave with another child, vacations...)

Sick Leave

If my husband and I become sick at the same time, we will need to close our daycare immediately. We will call you and expect you to pick your child up promptly. You should have an alternative plan for care in place in case of an emergency. If only one of us gets sick, we will call and make a judgement on which children will need to be picked up to keep our child to caregiver ratios in compliance with WAC. 

Back-up Child Care

We recommend that you have access to an alternate child care arrangement in the event that we become ill or when we're on vacation. If we are ill you will be notified as soon as possible so that you can make other arrangements. It is always your responsibility to find backup child care. For a child care referral, please call: Child Care Aware of Washington at 1-800-446-1114 or on-line at:

https://childcareawarewa.org/families

We reserve the right to terminate day care services with a 30-day notice and we require a 30-day notice from parents. If you should terminate your child's care without notice, you will be charged for those 30 days.

The following are conditions that may cause child care to be terminated:

A. Continual late payments

B. Child behavioral problems that are harmful to self and others that cannot be resolved

C. Not respecting child care setting and policies (children and/or parents)

D. Continual late pick-ups, without prior arrangements

1. Contact parents in person and discuss ways to resolve these issues.

2. Make any changes in our environment to accommodate their child

3. Make a plan with the family on ways to support appropriate behavior

4. Allow time for child to make behavioral improvements, based on learning our expectations and respecting our rules on safety

5. Seek outside Resources to Educate ourselves on any special needs a child may have and refer them onto the family

6. Give written notice of 30 days to find care elsewhere if issues cannot be resolved

We re-evaluate our monthly fee every year in September and will notify every one of any changes during our annual registration.

Our daycare rates currently are:

  Age                                          Full time/Monthly                                   

 Birth - 18 Months                            $2200                                                     

 18 Mo. until Potty-trained              $2100                                                      

 Potty-trained and Older                 $2000                                                     

Your contract will specify your child’s days and hours of care.

Annual Registration Fee

We require a non-refundable annual registration fee of $150 per child to cover administrative costs and reserve a spot in our care for your child. This fee is due on September 1st of each year. It will be pro-rated to $15 month, if you join our daycare in any month other than September. Example: You start our daycare in April, then your registration Fee would be $75 ($15 X 5 months). 

Payment Plan 

Monthly Fee is due regardless of child’s attendance.  Parents are required to pay for the time their child is scheduled to be in care. In other words, parents are paying for a space whether their child is here or not. Payment for care is due in advance, on the 1st of each month. Special payment terms are negotiable on occasion and will be defined in the contract. Payments are made through a bank app called Zelle using our phone number 4252453302.

Payment Penalties

1. The late payment fee is $15 per day.  If fees remain unpaid after a period of three days, your child will not be admitted until ALL fees are paid in full.

2. The penalty for NSF checks is $75 plus any bank charges incurred by us. Cash payment is required for returned checks. You may be put on a cash only basis after the second NSF check. 

3. The late pick-up fee is $5 per minute, starting after 10 minutes, if we’re not contacted in advance.

Extra Charges:

We require a 3-day Emergency Supply kit per child. See details under Emergency Prepare and Evac Plan for details. 

We are not responsible for items brought from home. If your child chooses to bring a toy, remind them that it could become lost or broken. We teach the children to share their toys, if they have a special item they don't want to share, it's better to leave that item at home.

          We Provide  -  Parent’s  Provide                   Item  +   Comments

 1.                                            X                         Pre-made Bottles with cover and labeled

                                                                           with child's name and date

                                                                           Glass or plastic labeled with "1",   "2",

                                                                            "4", or "5" on the bottle - must not 

                                                                contain the chemical bisphenol-A or phthalates

 2.                                            X                         Diapers  -  Disposable only

 3.                                            X                         Pull-ups or underwear + sweat pants - 

                                                                           when child is ready for potty-training

                                                               Children learn faster when they are able to take

                                                                off and put on their pants by themselves

 4.               X                                                       Wipes

 5.                                             X                         Change of clothes

                                                                 Appropriate for weather and size of child

 6.                                             X             Diaper Cream (must have written permission)

 7.               X                                                        Mat and sheet

 8.               X                            X                          Blanket 

                                                                Child may bring his/her own, we have extras

 9.               X                                                        Toothbrush/toothpaste

                                                                              Safe to   swallow

10.              X                            X                    Sunscreen (must have written permission)

                                                                  We use Banana Boat waterproof, tear free,  

                                                                  spf  50 or higher

11.                                             X                          3-day Emergency Supply Kit 

                                                                      Ready America Kits 

12.                                             X              Lunch   (Must meet USDA requirements)

We no longer offer Field Trips that require a vehicle for transportation. We do take an occasional walk around the baseball fields behind our home. Children’s emergency contact and medical release forms and medical/immunization records, a first aid kit, our first aid/CPR certification, and any medications needed by individual children will be taken on all field trips. Any medication administered will be recorded.

Smoking, vaping, alcohol use, or illegal drugs, including cannabis are prohibited on our property during business hours, including, but not limited to: 

• Indoor and outdoor grounds

• Adjacent sidewalks

• Parking lots

• Buildings

• Private vehicles 

This policy applies to all persons on the premises, regardless of their purpose for being there.  Federal law prohibits smoking within 25 feet of the premises.

Scientific evidence has linked respiratory health risks to secondhand smoke.

We are a non-smoking family.

No one under the influence of drugs or alcohol may be in the presence of the children at any time. 

We do not have any guns, weapons of ammunition in our home

No Pesticide Use

No pesticides will be used around children or during daycare hours.

We do not offer overnight care. If there is an emergency, we will maintain the same required adult to child ratios during nighttime care as during the daytime hours with the primary staff person remaining on the same floor as the children. One qualified staff person will remain awake until all children are asleep. 

 Sign-in and Sign-out Procedures

1. Arrival and pick-up instructions: 

When arriving; the parent, guardian or authorized person must sign the child in, and sign-out at pick up time. The sign-in/sign out tablet is located on the brown cabinet next to the entrance door. You are required to sign in/out using your full name, the date and time will automatically be entered. Our licensor will charge $75 a day for every non-signature day your child is in our care. This is the parent's responsibility and will be charged to you.

2. Please identify on the Child Care Registration form who is authorized to pick up your child. I will not release your child to any person without your written or verbal permission. The person picking up your child must have identification, as we may ask for verification of identity before releasing a child. Especially if the child doesn’t recognize the individual. 

3. Anyone who appears to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol arriving at childcare to pick up a child will be asked to call someone else to pick up that child. If a person leaves with a child while they appear to be under the influence, we will call 9-1-1.

Staffing Plan & Consistent Care Policy 

My husband and I are the main childcare providers. We have a staff to child ratio of 2:12 or 1:6. We will maintain the State required staff to child ratios at all times. If we have any staffing changes or need to be absent for an extended period of time, you will be notified in writing. Having consistent care provides steady opportunities for children to build emotionally secure relationships and trust with a limited number of staff.

Any Staff who covers for us in our absence will meet all State requirements to care for children and be fully trained according to State requirements and on the policies and procedures of our program. You may ask for access to our staff training and professional development records.

Non-discrimination Statement

We do not discriminate in employment practices or client services based on race, creed, ethnicity, national origin, marital status, gender, sexual orientation, class, age, religion, or ability; and comply with the requirements of the Washington law against discrimination.

Confidentiality policy including when information may be shared 

Information about children in the program will remain confidential. You have the right to access your child’s records. Anything of a sensitive nature will be shared outside of the presence of the children. No personal information will be given to third parties without parental permission. Our licensor from the Department of Children, Family, and Youth (DCYF) does periodical inspections of our daycare and has access to all our files including your child's file. Occasionally other day care parents ask for home phone numbers or addresses of their child’s friend in our care, we can only give this information out with the parents’ permission. 

1. Your cancelled check is your receipt, or you may ask for a payment receipt when you pay for child care.

2. You will receive an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) W-10 Form reporting your annual child care expenditures for the applicable tax year by January 31st of each year.

v Professional liability insurance: Taylor-Thomason

v Accidental/medical insurance: USLI

We rarely allow the children to watch TV or have screen time. An occasional "G"-rated cartoon may be allowed 1 or 2 times a year. We limit computer or tablet screen time to 15 minutes a day per child, if in use at all. Rare occasions occur in the Summer as older children may return for drop-in care, and bring their own device, with parental permission, to use during the younger children’s nap time.

Photos and Videos

We take photos and videos of the children for assessment and observation purposes. We share these photos with our parents through text messaging to keep you updated on your child’s activities in the daycare. We are not allowed to take any photos of your child without your written permission.

We offer a morning preschool program for children ages 3 to 5 years old. This program includes ECEAP with the Teaching Strategies Gold and Creative Curriculum with Math, Science, Reading, Writing, and Social Skills. Feel free to ask us about our program. All children go through developmental growth at their own rate. Therefore, individualized activities are as equally important as group activities. We believe that all children have the right to develop their own abilities within an environment that provides opportunities for success. Children’s Play is really Children’s Work. When learning is made to be fun, with lots of hands on activities, it is remembered and truly learned. Childhood memories are meant to last a lifetime and should be filled with happy thoughts and experiences. 

Summer Water Activities

We have lots of outdoor water play available for the children during the warm Summer months. We have a flowing water log where the children can build dams or have duck races. We also have water and sand tables where children can experience with objects that sink or float. Children can measure, fill, pour, float… Lots of Science and learning take place through cause and affect hands-on learning activities!

Mixed Age Groups

All children in our care are growing and learning together. We are a daycare Family where infants, toddlers, and preschoolers are learning to get along with each other. The children build relationships that are similar to brothers and sisters. Learning to be respectful, kind, and caring with each other, and other important social skills. The older children learn how to be soft and gentle with the younger infants and toddlers. They learn patience, as they wait their turn for a story, while an infant is being fed, diaper changed, or rocked to sleep. They gain responsibility as they clean up and help their younger friends to learn appropriate ways to play with toys. This gives them leadership skills. They also learn about life when they see an infant learn to sit, crawl, walk… and know that they were once an infant too; and that they are all growing and learning new skills, as well.

The younger children build relationships with the older children. They learn many new skills by watching and interacting together. They learn by imitating their older friends. They build upon their language skills by listening and talking with each other. We encourage them to be respectful and understanding of each other.  

When your child is ready to take that important step of moving on from our daycare into Kindergarten, we will get together with you and discuss ways we can support this move. Most school districts offer transition activities where you and your child can visit their classroom and meet the teacher as you enroll them in the school. This usually takes place in February and again in August, before school starts. You may also want to visit their new school and let your child play on the playground to become familiar with the area.  Our program will support the children with this transition by:

1. Reading books about starting school and making new friends

2. Talk with the children about safety on the bus or while walking

3. Talk about what they think some of the rules might be at school and compare them to our daycare rules – how might they be alike/different

4. Talk about transportation to school – will they be taking a bus, driving in their car, or walking?

5. Discuss what they might see in their classroom – how will it be the same/different from our daycare room

6. Discuss how we won’t be seeing them every day, but inviting them to come back for a visit with their families – let them know that they will always be a part of our daycare family, and how important they are to us

7. Celebration Party – a chance to say goodbye to their old friends and celebrate that they are growing up and moving on to new adventures and new friends